Nowhere Else I’d Rather Be
by LovelyJB
Summary: Jin and Xiaoyu are forced to run when they discover that assassins are being hired to hunt them down. Will they fall in love during the process? Xiaojin, JuliaHwoAsuka. Rated T for violence.
1. Bet

Jin Kazama was really tired. It had been a long day at college and he wanted to get some sleep. College was a lot tougher than he thought. He just failed his Chemistry test and was feeling bummed, plus, making matters worse, his sweater was starting to attract electricity. It was not a good day.

"Jin!" a high voice behind him called out. "Jin, wait up!" Jin turned his head to see a girl with pigtails run up to him. Her face lit by a mischievous smile, she stepped in front of him, her hands behind her back.

Ling Xiaoyu was in the senior class in the nearby Mishima High School, and possibly one of the few people who actually talked to Jin, but then again he found it quite hard to shake her off sometimes. Very pretty and innocent, always going by 'Xiao' than her full name, she was his best friend, no matter how many times he denied it. Xiao flicked her bangs out of her face and smiled at him.

"I just got invited to Takeshi's party," she said proudly. Jin stared blankly at her.

"And?" Xiao giggled.

"I want you to come with me!" she exclaimed happily. Jin stood there for a moment, but then turned to walk away. Xiao gripped him by the arm, pulling him back.

"Hey!" he said, annoyed. "Come on, let go. I'm tired!" Xiao didn't listen.

"The party's on Wednesday, Jin," she told him. "Relax." Jin pulled free and glared at her.

"I'm not going," he said simply. Xiao put her hand on her hips, a smug look on her face.

"Seriously?" She took a step closer to him. Jin ignored her, dusting his sweater. "How about a bet?" Jin looked up at her; he liked bets, probably because he always won.

"What do have in mind?" he asked. Xiao flicked her hair back, a sparkle in her eyes. She moved her right foot up and held her fists in front.

"Fight me," she said. Jin blinked.

"What?"

"I said fight me," Xiao laughed. "If you win, you don't have to come, if I win you do." Jin was shocked.

"What? No way." He waved her off. "I'm not fighting you."

Xiao stood her ground. "What's the matter?" she said in a playful voice. "Scared I'll win? Again?" Jin rolled his eyes, trying not to smile. "Okay, how about this? If you lose, you come shopping with me for a new dress." The young man wasn't pleased.

"Okay, wait a second. I'm not going anywhere with you—"

"So are you going to fight me or not?" Jin was still extremely uneasy about it; he didn't want to hurt her. But then again, he didn't want to go shopping either. Slowly, he placed down his schoolbag and readied himself. He anxiously waited for her to attack.

She smiled again, and then charged towards him. He saw her coming. If it was any other component, he would have easily countered by punching them as they approached, but it was Xiao this time. Without a counter, Xiao was able to give him the killer kick in the head, sending him flying.

Jin flew into the brick wall, ten feet away, breaking it. He let out a groan and rubbed his head as he slowly sat up. Xiao giggled again and ran over to him. She pulled him to his feet.

"Well," she said cheerfully. "Looks like I win." She placed her hands evenly on his chest and reached up to him on her tiptoes. "See you tomorrow." She shot him a wink and ran off into the sunset. Jin watched her, still rubbing his head. He let out a defeated sigh and reached for his backpack on the ground. He checked his watch and started walking away from the school. It just couldn't get any worse, could it?

* * *

Unknowingly to either Jin or Xiao, they were being watched. A small black car parked nearby with two men, one bearing binoculars. They sat in silence.

"So Kazama Jin is confirmed to be going to the party?" one of them asked. The other man put down the binoculars, nodding.

"Yeah," he muttered. "Both Ling Xiaoyu and Kazama Jin will be there. So far everything's gone according to plan." He took out his cell phone and began to dial.

"Hello?" An attractive blonde woman on the other end picked up.

"Hello, Miss Caroline? This is Tane and Ryu. The targets are in position." The woman chuckled. She took a seat at her desk.

"Good," she said. "Make sure everything goes according to plan." She rested the phone on her shoulder as she took out a photo from her drawer. It was a picture of Xiao and Jin in their high school uniform.

"Don't let anyone see you. I want them both disposed off, for what he did."

"Yes, ma'am." Caroline hung up the phone.

She looked at the photo for a moment, leaning back on her chair. She then took out a lighter and slowly lit the photo, burning it completely, the flames reflecting off her cold blue eyes. She smiled silkily. "Jin Kazama, I'll take everything away from you for what you did to me. I swear on my life."


	2. Schoolgirl Crush

"So, you're going to bring Jin with you to Takeshi's party?"

Xiaoyu waved to Miharu as she walked to her next class, with her was her new friend and Jin's cousin, Asuka Kazama. She had been transfered to Mishima High School three months ago. Asuka was a year younger than her, but was in the same grade. Xiao smiled.

"Yeah," she replied lightly. "Are you coming?" Asuka shook her head.

"I've still got that Commerce assignment to finish off," she muttered. "I won't be able to make it." Xiao smirked at her friend as they took a seat.

"Who would you have asked if you could go?" Asuka blushed and started fidgeting with her fingernails. "Asuka?"

"I'd ask…Hwoarang." Asuka grinned sheepishly.

"Hwoarang?" Xiao repeated. "Don't tell me you still like him—"

"Hey!" Asuka exclaimed with a laugh. "So what if I do?" Xiao merely shrugged. The teacher entered and the classroom became quiet. Asuka took something out of her pocket and showed it to Xiao under the desk. It was a box.

"Happy birthday for last week," Asuka whispered. She opened it to reveal a pair of crystal drop earrings, Xiao's favourite. Xiao let out a gasp of astonishment and hugged her friend.

"Thanks!" she exclaimed. The teacher cleared his throat loudly and the two friends pulled apart. He gestured them to stand up.

"Something you'd like to share with the class, ladies?" Xiao and Asuka kept a straight face. Xiao slipped the box into her pocket.

"No, sir."

* * *

Jin stood outside the school gates, waiting for the bell. He leaned against the wall, his arms crossed. He should have been at home training instead of waiting here. He checked his watch; seniors were allowed to leave an hour earlier, so he should brace himself.

Julia Chang and Hwoarang walked up to him. Julia was an exchange student from America, settling down in Japan for her research. She met Jin and Hwoarang at the Iron Fist Tournament last year, and they became good friends.

Hwoarang came over from Korea a few months ago, taking up a job. Despite the rivalry between him and Jin, they respected each other and got along. But he might have moved to Japan for Julia. Having being defeated by her in the past tournament, he quickly developed a crush on her. He made the first move, and as a result of him being the gallant man he was, they were dating now. They couldn't be happier.

"What's up?" Julia asked, seeing him so anxious. Hwoarang studied Jin carefully. He clicked his fingers.

"I know what it is," he said cheekily. Jin rolled his eyes. Hwoarang let out a laugh. "You lost a bet to Xiao, didn't you, Hyung?" Julia nudged him in the side to silence him. Jin let out a sigh.

"I'm going shopping," he muttered monotonically. He looked at his watch. "In 5…4…3…2…1…"

The bell rang loudly, as expected. Soon enough, the sound of stampeding seniors rumbled closer and closer until Jin found himself lost in the moving crowd.

"Whoa!" he yelled. Out of nowhere, a hand grabbed him tightly around his left wrist and pulled him out of the mob. Julia dragged him back behind the wall, where it was safe.

"Hey, Jin!" Xiao came running over to him, Asuka not far behind her. She stopped and smiled shyly at Hwoarang.

"Hey," she said, blushing. Julia smirked smugly at Hwoarang; she knew what was going on.

"Hey," Hwoarang replied. There was an awkward pause. Julia, Jin and Xiao glanced around at each other. Hwoarang cleared his throat loudly. "So, um, are you going to the party?" Asuka's face lit up.

"Yeah!" she said quickly. Xiao raised an eyebrow. "Wanna come with me?" Everyone turned to look at Hwoarang. He looked over at Julia. She just shrugged.

"Well…" he muttered. "If Julia can come along as well…" Asuka looked over at Julia, a spark of jealousy in her eyes.

"Okay," she said, turning back and smiling at Hwoarang. She went over and took his hands. Hwoarang backed away a little. She laughed at his expression. She looked back at Xiao over her shoulder. "We'll see you at the party tomorrow." She shot Jin a smile and walked off.

Julia rested her chin on Hwoarang's shoulder from behind as they watched her leave. Julia simpered.

"She likes you," Julia teased. Hwoarang turned his head slightly to her, letting out a scoff.

"Oh, come on," he muttered in her ear. "You know you're the only girl for me." He kissed her lightly. Julia giggled and stood back up. She glanced over at Xiao and Jin. They were watching silently. Hwoarang took Julia's hand.

"We'll see you at the party, I guess," he said. Julia rested her head on his shoulder, smiling peacefully. Hwoarang gave a quick wave and they walked off together.

Jin and Xiao took a moment to shake off their thoughts.

"Come on," Xiao chirped, wrapped her arm around his. "Let's go shopping!"

* * *

**In the beginning, I was planning to make it Hwoarang/Asuka rather than Hwoarang/Julia, but I figured she was a little too young for him in this story. I replaced Miharu with Asuka because she seems alot more mature and serious, something I need for the ending. :) Now, all the girls are good friends, so there's going to be no commotion between them.**

**"Hyung" is what Korean guys call their male friends. I wanted Hwoarang and Jin to have a turbulent friendship in this story. :)**

**This story is supposed to be Romance/Drama, but I guess at the beginning it's better off being Humor. We'll get to the romance and drama later on. ;) **


	3. Party Time

Jin was literally dragged by Xiao the whole way to the mall. She was so excited; she immediately headed to the dress store.

"Takeshi said it'd be a semi-formal party," she remarked, popping her head around the corners. She grinned at Jin. "I wanna get a really nice dress." She stared at the young man up and down. "You should have a look around too; maybe find a nice suit or something." Jin just stubbornly crossed his arms and looked away. Xiao shrugged and started looking for a dress.

She made Jin sit down while she tried on a few dozen. She was very interested in the oriental dresses, mainly the cheongsams. She picked out a beautiful white floral one, but she refused to put it on in front of Jin.

"I want you to see me at the party in this," she said playfully. She paid at the counter for it and then went to the next store; the make up store. Jin quickly grabbed a brochure and hid behind it as women stared at him, giggling and whispering to each other. He quickly went over to Xiao, who was examining the lipstick samples.

"Can I go now?" he asked, annoyed. Xiao shook her head, not looking at him. She picked up two colors and held the up to him.

"Which one would look better on me?" she said. She held up the one in her right hand. "Strawberry." She held up the one in her left hand. "Or raspberry." Jin rolled his eyes.

"Whatever," he muttered. "Just get what you want so I can go." Xiao cocked her head to one side, a smirk on her lips.

"Okay," she said. "But if you go now, you have to take me to the party." She grabbed his shirt collar and pulled him down to her level. There was a sparkle in her eye. "As a date."

"As a what…?" he exclaimed. Xiao just smiled sweetly, and Jin gave in.

Nothing was worse than being asked out by a girl who using it as blackmail.

"Okay, fine," he sighed. Xiao let go and jumped up and down, clapping her hands happily. Jin held her firmly by the shoulders to calm her down. He let out a frustrated sigh. "But that doesn't make you my girlfriend or anything." Xiao stopped and put her hands on her hips, smiling smugly. Jin blushed a little.

"I never said that," Xiao giggled. She glanced at her watch. "Ooh, almost time for Stairway to Heaven." She ran over to the cash register. "I wanna know what Yuri is gonna do." She paid for the make up and then turned to Jin. "Toodles. See you at the party." She blew him a kiss and ran off, leaving Jin standing by himself, red-faced in a make-up store.

* * *

Julia and Asuka burst out laughing.

"So, you just left him there?" Asuka choked. She was sitting on Xiao's bed, watching as Julia fixed up Xiao's hair.

"Well, yeah," Xiao giggled. She winced a little as Julia pulled up her hair into an elegant bun. "Hey, that hurts!" Julia ignored her. She and Asuka were fully dressed, fully pampered, ready for the party. They insisted that they treat Xiao to it.

Asuka went over to Xiao's side and looked at her in the mirror.

"Your hair looks pretty good," she remarked as Julia started pegging some flower clips. "By the way, I love your dress." She looked down at her own. It was a powder blue gown, v-necked and ending at her knees. "Maybe I should have gone oriental too." She let her hair down, but it was much softer-looking than usual. She was wearing long glittery earrings. The look suited her well.

"Oh, relax," Julia said, taking out the make-up and applying it to Xiao. "You look fine." She was wearing a silky jade-green dress, very elegant but also very flirtatious. Her hair was tied in a loose braid, held up with a ribbon and a single feather. She was wearing a bead necklace and diamond stud earrings. Xiao coughed as she powdered her face.

"Thanks for letting us use your shoes, Julia," she said when the smoke cleared. She looked down at the stilettos. They looked good. Julia grabbed her roughly by the jaw and traced her lips with the pink lip gloss.

"Done," she exclaimed with an exhausted sigh. Xiao rubbed her jaw and glared at the older girl.

"You didn't have to be so rough, you know," she mumbled. Julia merely smirked.

"Okay," she said, taking a step back. She gestured Xiao to stand up. "Let's see how you look." Xiao stood up. The other two girls studied her for a moment.

"Something's missing," Asuka suggested. She went over to the drawers and took out the earrings she gave her. Xiao beamed as Asuka handed them to her.

"Oh, these would go perfectly with my dress!" She turned to the mirror and put the earrings on. Julia and Asuka walked up from behind her, looking at her reflection. Julia placed her hands on Xiao's shoulders. She smiled.

"Now, you look perfect."

* * *

Hwoarang and Jin waited impatiently downstairs. It had been almost two hours. The clock seemed to be ticking louder and louder. Hwoarang shifted on his seat, checking his watch constantly, while Jin seemed to have fallen asleep.

"We're ready, boys!" Julia's voice came. Jin jolted back to reality as the two men turned their direction to the stairs. Hwoarang stood up and stared with awe as Julia made her way down.

"You look hot," he said, extending his hand for her to take. Julia smiled coyly. As soon as she set foot down on the ground, Asuka followed up.

"Just wait until you see Xiao," she said excitedly to Jin. She hurried down the stairs and stood next to Hwoarang.

"How do I look, Hwoarang?" she asked, turning around in a circle. Hwoarang scratched his head.

"You…you look good," he muttered. Asuka grinned and wrapped her arms around his.

"Ready or not, here I come!" Xiao's voice came. She slowly walked down. Jin's eyes widened slightly as he saw her.

She was beautiful. Her hair was tied up, decorated with little flowers, her dress matching it perfectly. Jin almost lost his breath.

"Whoa," he muttered mindlessly. He suddenly realized what he was doing and snapped out of it. "I mean…humph." Xiao walked over to him as he stood up. She giggled.

"Is that really all you got to say?" Jin shrugged, blushing a little. He took something out of his pocket.

"Here," he said, holding it out. It was a gold necklace with a gemstone. Xiao stared at it in delighted awe. "After you left, the women there made me buy this." Xiao turned around so he could put it on for her. "They told me it was the gallant thing to do." Xiao turned back around and examined the pendant fondly. She beamed.

"Thanks so much!" she exclaimed happily. She reached up and hugged him. Hwoarang cleared his throat loudly. Xiao let go of a red-faced Jin and looked over at him.

"I think it's time to go," Hwoarang suggested. He looked over to the other two girls. "Don't you think so?"

"Absolutely!" Asuka said brightly, still gripping onto his arm tightly. Hwoarang sighed and looked over to Julia. He smiled and extended his other arm, to which she took. The threesome walked past Jin and Xiao.

"Yeah!" Xiao said enthusiastically. She took his hand. "Let's party!" And at that, she dashed after her friends, dragging her not-so-excited date with her.


	4. Eavesdropping Is Never A Crime

"Whoa, I didn't know Takeshi was this rich… "

The five friends arrived at a huge manor. A lot of people were already inside; most of them were from school. Asuka and Xiao were both very excited.

"Wow!" Asuka exclaimed, running in first. "This place is huge!" she stared around the room with awe.

It was very big. There were long tables with food along one side of each wall. There was a dance floor, big enough for everyone. Music was being played, coming out of speakers from the corners of the ceiling. Everyone was enjoying quietly, no commotion. It was the perfect party.

"This is awesome!" Xiao said happily. She took Jin's hands and beamed at him. "Aren't you glad you came?" Jin rolled his eyes and said nothing. Xiao merely shrugged and they headed over to talk to the other guests.

Julia looked around.

"Hey," she said. "Where's the host?" Hwoarang just shrugged.

"Beats me," he muttered. A' man suddenly bumped past him along with a few others following him outside. "Hey! Watch it!" Hwoarang grabbed the man by the shoulder and swung him around. The man didn't look like he cared.

"What d'ya bump me for?" Hwoarang demanded. Julia walked up behind him. The man and his friends laughed.

"Sorry," he said. "Guess I just didn't see you. Heh, no one can, when you're a loser." At that, they walked off. Hwoarang's anger rose and he tried to follow them, only to be held back by Julia.

"Hey, stop it," she said firmly. Hwoarang stopped and turned to her. She looked serious.

"What did you promise me?" Hwoarang sighed and dropped his gaze.

"I promised I'd get along with Jin-hyung for Asuka's sake and yours," he said almost lazily. Julia raised an eyebrow.

"Well… yes… but you promised me something else."

"That I would stop making fun of the cops?" Julia sighed irritably and rubbed the bridge of her nose.

"No… " she muttered. "You promised you'd only fight in the tournaments from now on." Hwoarang rolled his eyes. "Hwoarang… "

"Alright, alright," he mumbled. "I'll leave those bastards alone." Julia beamed and planted a kiss on his cheek. "But it's only because of you." Julia nodded, happy with the reason.

Suddenly, a catchy dance song started to play. Xiao beamed at Jin.

"Come on," she said. "Let's dance!" She dragged him out and she made him dance. He didn't seem too confident about it, though, constantly tripping over, and only saved because Xiao was there. Asuka watched them for a moment, and then ran over to Hwoarang. She took his hands and smiled sweetly at him.

"Wanna dance?" she asked. Hwoarang looked uneasy.

"Um… I can't dance… " he muttered. Julia pushed him from behind.

"Of course you can!" she said, laughing. "Go and have some fun! But you have to give him back at the end of the dance." Asuka beamed at her, while Hwoarang looked utterly confused and horrified.

"What… ?" he blurted. Asuka started to drag him away. "Hey! Julia… !" He unsuccessfully tried to resist her, looking at Julia for help. She just shrugged and moved over to the drinks.

Xiao looked around the room. Up against the walls were extremely large pillars, holding them up.

"How much do you think one of those weigh?" she asked. Jin turned his head to them.

"Hmmm, I'd say about three tonnes," he muttered. Xiao stared at them, wide-eyed.

"Oh my gosh, how did they get them in here?" Jin just shrugged. "What would happen if it fell on someone?"

"I don't think they will," he remarked. "It isn't easy to knock one of those things down. But if it does come down…" He shook his head grimly. "Each of them weigh at least three to five tonnes… it'll be bad." The song finally ended, both Hwoarang and Jin were grateful. Asuka walked Hwoarang off the dance floor, but was still extremely excited. Julia walked up to them.

"Man, that was awesome!" Asuka exclaimed to Hwoarang. "I'm thirsty now, I'm gonna go get some drinks, okay?" Hwoarang nodded slightly. She grinned and kissed him on the cheek, then ran off. Hwoarang wiped his cheek with his sleeve, a little annoyed. Julia just laughed.

"I still don't get why you're okay with this," he said to her. Julia shrugged.

"Because I know you love me," she said simply. Hwoarang couldn't help but smile. A ballad began to play.

"So… you still wanna dance?" He extended his hand to Julia. She smirked and they walked back onto the dance floor. They were the only couple, but they didn't care. Julia wrapped her arms around his neck as he placed his around her waist. The lights dimmed and they stared into each other's eyes.

"That's funny," Julia said, smiling. "I thought you'd be happy that two girls are head-over-heels in love with you." Hwoarang just scoffed, blushing a little.

Other couples joined in the dance, following suit. Xiao and Jin did too. It was clear to see that Jin was still a little uneasy about it, but he didn't resist when she dragged him back in. It became quite a peaceful moment.

Asuka looked around at the drink table. She grabbed a plastic cup.

"Hey, there's no ice left." She scratched her head. "Hey, you!" The girl next to her looked up. "Where's all the ice?" The girl looked around at the table.

"I guess you've got to get some more outside," she suggested. Asuka sighed. She grabbed another cup for Hwoarang. She headed out the backyard.

"Okay, where would Takeshi put the ice?" She walked near the shed and looked around at the ground.

"No… " a weak voice from behind the shed begged. "… please… don't… " Asuka frowned a little and peeped from behind the edges. Her eyes widened in horror.

Two men in black clothing were standing in front of another young man. It was Takeshi. One of the men was holding him by the shirt collar, and his feet were daggling. He seemed to be choking.

"Mind telling us why there are so many people inside?" one of them asked. Takeshi swallowed hard.

"Look," he muttered breathlessly. "I did everything you told me to… I invited Ling Xiaoyu and Kazama Jin to the party… " Asuka covered her mouth tightly.

"That still doesn't explain why this place is packed," the other man said.

"I couldn't just invite the two of them!" Takeshi cried, struggling to breathe. "There had to be more people so it wouldn't look fishy!" The man dropped Takeshi hard on the ground, where he panted for breath. He turned to the other man.

"Ryu," he said quietly. "What do we do now?" Ryu bent down to Takeshi.

"We got orders from Miss Caroline to kill the both of them," he said, his tone dangerous. Asuka felt a chill run down her spine. "But I guess now, everyone will have to go."

"What?" Takeshi was horrified. "You can't kill all of them!"

"Too late thinking about that now," Ryu laughed. "We've already set a bomb inside; it'll blow up any minute now." But then he stopped and began to think. "Wait." He turned to the other man. "These two aren't ordinary people, Tane. I have a hunch they'll survive it. Maybe we'll raid them out after the bomb goes off." Tane grinned horribly. He took out a black face mask and put it on.

"Yeah," he laughed. "We'll do it ourselves." He looked back down at Takeshi. "Looks like you've done your job properly after all." Takeshi looked grateful.

"Am I free to go now?" he asked hopefully. The two men laughed. Ryu put on his own mask.

"Nah," he said carelessly. He took out a gun with a silencer and pointed it at the young man. "No one else can know about this. Too risky." Takeshi's eyes widened with terror and he tried to back away into the wall.

"No… please… " Takeshi begged. Ryu just shrugged.

"Goodbye," he smirked. Asuka couldn't bring herself to watch. She turned away from the scene as a muffled shot was heard. She was shaking.

Someone wanted to kill Jin and Xiao.

She dropped her cups and ran as fast as she could back inside. She rushed over to Hwoarang and Julia, pulling them apart.

"Hey," Hwoarang exclaimed. "You had your turn!" He suddenly realized how pale Asuka was.

"What's wrong?" Julia asked.

"We have to get everyone out of here," Asuka said shakily. "Someone's trying to kill Jin and Xiao!"

"What?" Hwoarang and Julia both looked shocked and horrified.

"THERE'S A BOMB IN HERE!" Asuka said frantically. "It's going to go off any second!"

Suddenly, a loud beeping noise was heard coming from the floor in the centre of the room. Everyone stopped to look at it, confused, but Asuka knew exactly what it was.

"Too late!"

Hwoarang threw his arms around the girls and pulled them down, protecting them just in time as the blast erupted, sending them flying into the wall. The ceiling came down onto them, and everything went silent.


	5. Ambush

Slowly, Hwoarang pushed the heavy plate of concrete off himself and the two girls. He then collapsed back onto the ground, breathing hard and clutching his bleeding arm in pain, next to Julia and Asuka. Who were both unharmed.

"Hwoarang," Julia muttered weakly, trying to help him. "Are you okay?"

Asuka coughed as the dust around her started to settle. She stared around the room in a horrified daze.

It was in complete ruins. Not a soul was about.

"Oh no…" she whispered feebly. She scrambled to the heap of rubble on her hands and knees. Her face was caked with ashes and her dress was torn beyond repair. Her breathing grew jagged as her eyes darted around the room.

"Oh my god…"

She desperately pushed the pile of rocks aside with both hands.

"JIN! XIAO! WHERE ARE YOU?!"

Julia ripped off a piece of her dress and bandaged Hwoarang's arm with it. He smiled gratefully but meekly and then looked over at Asuka as she crawled further away. Julia pulled him to his feet.

"Jin!" Asuka cried, trying with all her might to push over a boulder. She struggled with all the little strength she had left, unwilling to give up until she found her cousin. "Jin! Xiao! Where are you…?" She finally pushed the boulder aside and unsteadily stood up, looking around wildly.

Suddenly, she saw something moving.

A plate of concrete was moving. She ran quickly to it, pulling it off as hard as she could. Julia and Hwoarang immediately went over and helped her. At last, they pulled the enormous plate aside to reveal the two other survivors; Jin and Xiaoyu.

They also had taken cover just in time, and Jin had protected Xiao with his own body, therefore earning himself several injuries but Xiao was unharmed. Asuka jumped down to them and threw her arms around Jin.

"You're okay!" she exclaimed hoarsely. She hugged him tightly, causing him to let out a groan of pain. "Oh." She released him, grinning sheepishly. "Sorry, Jin."

Jin smiled and let out a sigh of relief, looking at Xiao over her shoulder.

"You alright?" Julia asked Xiao as Hwoarang helped her up. She was a little shaken, but nodded. She gasped as she looked around the room.

"Wha…what happened?" Asuka suddenly remembered. She quickly grabbed Jin's arm.

"Someone's trying to kill you and Xiao," she said breathlessly. Jin was surprised; he had never seen her so shaken up before.

"What?"

"Someone's trying to kill you!" Asuka repeated, more loudly with a note of panic in her voice. "You guys have to go now." She glanced at Xiao. "Be-before they come back…" Xiao and Jin were utterly confused. Hwoarang stepped in front of Asuka, a serious look on his face.

"That bomb was intended for the both of you," he said firmly. "Go now, or they'll come back to finish what they started." Jin frowned. He raised an arm in front of Xiao as she was about to question. She looked at him dubiously.

Suddenly, they were showered by the sound of bullets. Two masked men in black jumped down from the ceiling. The five fighters braced themselves.

"We're not the target," Asuka said, rising up her fists. "But we'll help." Julia and Hwoarang nodded in agreement.

"Damn it," one of the intruders cursed. "We didn't count of this many of them surviving." The other man uttered a laugh, eyeing Julia eagerly.

"That just means we'll have more fun," he commented, laughing horribly. There was something about the way he talked that frustrated Julia, something that really, really frustrated her.

Without warning, she charged towards Gunman 2 and aimed a kick to his chest. Surprisingly, he dodged it with ease, and instead Julia received the blow.

Her head was swung back, her hair ripped free from the bun, and she stumbled back onto the ground, rubbing her cheek. Julia took a deep breath, stunned at the gunman's agility.

"Looks like we're gonna have to play hard." She attacked again, grabbing his shirt collar. Without even reacting, Gunman 2 immediately kicked her hard into the chest, throwing her back. However, Julia didn't let go, and instead the chain Gunman was wearing around his neck ripped off after her.

Julia crashed into the back wall, sliding down onto the floor. Hwoarang jumped out and attacked the gunman as he tried again to approach Julia. Hwoarang countered, but it was hard to catch him; Gunman 2 was very talented at martial arts. He even wondered why the man had a gun with him.

Meanwhile, Gunman 1 had charged at a greatly weakened Jin. He opened fire, causing Xiao and Asuka to be quick on their feet and unable to help Jin. Asuka stopped and somersaulted into the air, forgetting completely that that meant her guard would be let down to him.

_Bang!_

The girl in the blue dress let out a cry of pain, falling hard onto the ground. She began to hyperventilate, clutching her chest. Hwoarang rushed over to her.

"Asuka!" He took her in his arms. She was trembling with pain. Hwoarang looked back up, only to see Gunman 2 aiming his gun at him. He leapt out of the way just in time, still holding the injured girl.

_Bang!_

The young Korean landed on one knee, panting for breath as his heart raced at a thousand miles. He glanced over his shoulder to the other side of the room.

Julia fell backwards against the wall, onto the ground. Her eyes were closed, her teeth were clenched in pain and he could see her chest rising and falling rapidly. She was still holding onto the gunman's neck chain in a tight fist, but slowly, her hand began to open.

"Julia!" Hwoarang shouted, horrified.

She laid still.

Hwoarang had no time to react as Gunman 2 attacked again. He quickly dodged the attacks, scrambling over to Julia. He gently laid Asuka next to her.

After making sure they were both okay, he stood up and turned to face the gunman.

Calmly, he took out a pair of motorbike goggles from his pocket and slid them on top of his head, pushing his red hair back. He slowly raised his fiery almond eyes up to the intruder.

"This time," he muttered, ripping off his torn jacket. He readied himself. "This time it's personal!" At that, he attacked, taking Gunman 2 by surprise with his violent kick.

Gunman 1, on the other hand, was still at an advantage in his fight. Xiao began fighting back hard, Jin right beside her, but the gunman was good.

With one might punch in the stomach, Jin was thrown ten feet away into the wall of rocks and rubble. Xiao, though less powerful, she was much quicker, and was able to dodge his attempted death blows.

"I'm sick of this!" she shrieked angrily. "This was supposed to be a great party and you people had to kill it!" She had the man cornered, so she readied her final attack. She raised her fist and shot it straight for his head, but Gunman 1 jumped out of the way just in time, her punch instead ploughing into the pillar of solid stone behind him, causing it to crack at the point.

Xiao let out a frustrated yelp, and spun around to him.

"Hold still!" she shouted irritably.

Jin regained consciousness, and he watching helplessly from the distance. The gunman was trying to keep Xiao on the same spot. Why?

Then Jin realized.

The pillar. It was going to collapse.

He quickly tried to get up, struggling as his body rubbed against the hard jagged rocks.

"Xiao! Look out!" But she couldn't hear him.

The gunman kicked her hard in the chest, sending her crashing into the pillar. It slowly began to fall forward, but Xiao didn't notice. She got back up and charged at the intruder. Jin broke free and rushed over.

"Xiao!" The gunman was cunning.

_Bang!_

He shot a single bullet into her knee, forcing her to stop right on the pinpoint spot. Then, and only then, did she realize it was coming down.

"XIAO!" Jin ran as fast as he could, but it was too late.

The three tonne, three foot wide pillar of solid stone came crashing down on top of her. It forced her down, crushing onto her body below her shoulders.

She didn't even scream, merely letting out a shaken gasp. Her eyes were still open, she was still alive, but she was struggling hard to breathe, the pain slowly killing her. Jin watched with pure horror. The merciless gunman smirked sadistically as he stared at Xiao at his feet.

Jin rushed to her and tried to lift up the pillar by himself. He was still weak, only able to pull it up just enough to allow Xiao to breathe before he heard the sound of a gun cocking at his ear. He froze, tilting his head to see the gun at his head.

The gunman smiled.

"That was way too easy," he said, almost bored. "Looks like you were easier to beat than Miss Caroline thought." He took the gun in both hands, ready to pull the trigger.

Suddenly, police sirens rang out through the room. Both gunmen stopped and looked outside, panic-stricken.

"Let's get outta here," Gunman 2 shouted, and he ran out. The other man nodded.

He shot Jin a venomous glare, then darted out after his partner.

Jin lifted the weight completely off Xiao, taking her into his arms. He glanced at his friends.

Julia and Asuka were both unconscious and badly hurt. Hwoarang was left breathless and severely wounded. He sank to his knees before collapsing, blacked out. Jin stared down at the girl in his arms.

Xiao wasn't unconscious, he knew, but her eyes were closed, and she was trembling uncontrollably. Jin pushed a strand of hair out of her face, feeling his breath quicken.

"Xiao…" he whispered, slapping her face gently. She didn't open her eyes. "Xiao, wake up…"

She didn't wake, but instead a soft pained groan escaped from her parted lips. Jin looked down at her petite body; she was all bruised and was beginning to bleed. He lifted her off the ground, holding her closely.

"You're going to be okay," he said calmly. "I promise." He gently pressed her face into his chest to silence her moaning. It killed him to hear her in so much pain, but he couldn't stop now. He couldn't.

Without a single glance at his fallen comrades, he sprinted out of the house, past the police officers who had just arrived.

He knew the others were hurt too, but they would understand.

Nothing else mattered at the moment; he just needed to get Xiao to a hospital fast.

That was the only thing that mattered.


	6. An Old Friend

The monitor beeped at a steady, even pace.

Xiao was lying peacefully in a hospital bed, asleep. Jin sat at her bedside watching, Julia standing just behind him with her arm in a loose sling and her shoulder bandaged.

Xiao looked so peaceful, but she was still a little pale.

Hwoarang and Asuka were outside the room, talking to a police officer.

"They said they were working for someone called Miss Caroline," Asuka said. Her injury had healed quickly, but not completely, so the doctors suggested she stayed in a wheelchair for a while. Ironically, the person she asked to help her with her temporary disability was none other than Hwoarang, who had pushed her around smoothly all day. The officer nodded and marked it down in his notebook.

"Alright ma'am," he said. "We'll immediately look into it." Asuka nodded in appreciation as he walked off.

Inside the room, Jin continued to stare with guilt at his unconscious friend. Julia gave his shoulder a friendly squeeze.

"It wasn't your fault," she muttered, reading his mind. Jin didn't look at her, merely shaking his head.

"I couldn't run fast enough," he murmured. "It collapsed two feet in front of me…" He turned around to Julia. "She could have died right there."

Julia shook her head. Hwoarang pushed Asuka into the room.

"But she didn't," Asuka said reassuringly. "She's here and alive because of you."

Xiao let out a soft groan as she began to stir. She yawned loudly and stretched her arms out, sitting up. She rubbed her eyes.

"Morning," she said happily. She frowned at her friends. "Something wrong?"

Asuka shot up from her wHyelchair and ran over to hug her.

"You're okay!" she cried. Xiao was a little surprised, awkwardly raising her hands to Asuka's back.

"Um, yeah. Why wouldn't I be?" Jin smiled and rolled his eyes.

Julia joined Asuka and wrapped her arms around Xiao. Hwoarang smirked at her, still standing by the wHyelchair.

"Welcome back, kiddo. You gave us one helluva scare."

"Huh?" Xiao pulled away from her friends, still a little confused, but then remembered what happened the other night. Her smile faded. She quickly looked over at Jin.

"It wasn't a dream?" She stared around the room, only just realizing it was a hospital. She glanced down at her belly. She rubbed her hand gently along it, feeling a long scar. Jin and the others watched with grim expressions.

"Your organs were crushed and you were bleeding internally," Jin said, though his tone was indifferent. She looked at him. "It was a long operation." Xiao stayed silent for a moment.

"The pillar came down on me…" she muttered to herself. She gazed back at Jin. "And you pulled me out." Julia and Asuka exchanged a proud smile, also looking at Jin. He looked away remorsefully. Hwoarang saw this and went over to Xiao. He bent down so only she could hear what he was saying.

"He thinks it's his fault," he whispered to her. Xiao raised an eyebrow.

Just then, the nurse came in carrying a food tray. She smiled as she saw Xiao.

"You're awake, that's very good." She set down the tray in front of her. The nurse gazed around at Jin, Julia, Asuka and Hwoarang.

"I'm sorry, there are too many people in here," she said matter-of-factly. "The patient needs her rest." Xiao helped herself to some cornflakes.

"Just ten more minutes," she told the nurse. She forked a piece of apple and chewed it fondly. The nurse sighed and nodded.

"Alright," she said, placing her hands on her hips. "Ten minutes exactly. All of you must leave." The others nodded their heads and muttered a "yes ma'am", and she left, closing the door behind her.

"Kids these days," she said under her breath. "So stubborn." She headed over to the front desk a few feet away and looked through the files. Little did she know, a woman nearby was watching her.

Of Korean heritage, long black hair dyed gold-brown, innocent dark brown eyes, pink lips, appearing to be no older than Jin or Hwoarang's age. Her beauty was breathtaking with a childlike factor, but there was a deadliness in the depths of her eyes. (A.N. Think Evil!Wondergirl.) She was wearing a leather biker outfit that hugged every curve.

The young woman licked her glossy lips as she stared venomously at the nurse. She closed her eyes and shook her head, imitating a look of pure innocence as she opened them again. She walked up to the nurse.

"Excuse me, unnie," she said in an accented voice, tapping her gently on the shoulder. She smiled sweetly. "Could you please help me?" She pulled up her sleeve to reveal a large cut. "Could you please give me something for this?" The nurse examined the cut.

"Would you like me to go get a doctor?" she asked. The girl smiled.

"It's okay," she said. "I already asked for a doctor." She jerked her thumb back over her shoulder. "He asked me to go fetch him a nurse." She giggled. The nurse frowned.

"A doctor sent you for a nurse?" The girl nodded.

"He's right in there," she said, pointing to a room in the far distance. She took the nurse's arm and pulled her along as she made her way to it. "C'mon, he's kinda impatient." As they reached the door, the girl allowed the nurse to go in first. She smiled evilly as the nurse looked around at the empty room. The girl quietly closed the door.

"There's no one in here," the nurse said. "Why did you take me—"

The girl smashed a glass bottle onto her head from behind, glass and blood flying everywhere.

The nurse collapsed onto the ground in a pool of blood, dead. The girl stared coldly at the body.

"That's why, unnie," she muttered. She threw the remains of the glass bottle aside and bent down to the body.

She quickly started to remove the nurse's uniform.

* * *

"So, do you think the police will catch whoever is after us?" Xiao spooned some jello into her mouth. Hwoarang shook his head.

"We don't know," he said darkly. "But we do know that they're extremely strong. I mean, all five of us couldn't even take one of them out. It might be a good idea if you guys stayed somewhere safer than here." Julia agreed.

"As soon as Xiao's recovered," she told Jin. "You two have to leave Yokohama." Xiao blinked.

"But where will we go?"

"You could go back to Osaka," Asuka suggested, looking at Jin. "My father can look after the problem for you." She reached into her pocket and pulled out two pairs of coloured train tickets. She handed them to Jin.

"Or either Tokyo or Sendai. The police told me to give these to you."

"You should go to Seoul," Hwoarang remarked. "Security is really tight over there." Julia and Asuka gave him a strange look.

Jin cleared his throat and pocketed the tickets.

The biker girl from before quietly entered the room, only she wasn't a biker girl anymore. She was dressed in the nurse's clothes, her hair tied neatly under her cap.

She stopped dead in her tracks as she saw the group of friends, instantly recognizing one of them.

"Hwoarang-sshi…?" she mumbled mindlessly. Hwoarang turned around to see her. She felt her heart tighten.

It was him.

The new nurse cleared her throat and pulled her cap down over her eyes. She went over to them and smiled brightly.

"Okay, time for the patient to rest now," she said sweetly. Asuka frowned a little.

"What happened to the other nurse?" she asked suspiciously. The new nurse shrugged.

"She must have finished her shift," she replied simply. She gestured them to leave. "C'mon. Oh, except you," she said to Jin as he rose from his chair. "She's allowed one visitor." She went over and pushed him back down. Jin was a little confused, but obeyed. The nurse smiled.

"Make yourself comfortable." She smiled again and headed to the door. She pulled down her cap again as she walked past Hwoarang, who watched her suspiciously. The nurse opened the door, and Julia, Asuka and Hwoarang went outside.

Making sure no one was watching, she took a magnetic device from her pocket and stuck it to the side of the nearby cupboard where it couldn't be seen from the bed. She pressed a few buttons and the device activated.

00 : 10 : 00

She pressed one more button and the timer began to count down. She smiled sinisterly and glanced back at the unaware couple.

"Enjoy it while you can," she muttered under her breath. She gave them a sugary smile and went outside, closing the door.

She quickly locked it.

The nurse turned around, shocked to see Julia, Asuka and Hwoarang watching her.

"Sorry," she said casually. "Only one visitor." She quickly pulled her cap down and walked away.

"Wait!" he called out. The nurse froze, too afraid to move. Hwoarang walked slowly up to her. She felt her breath caught in her throat.

"That's an interesting accent you have there," the red-haired young man said, standing in front of her. "You're Korean?" The nurse lifted her eyes to him, smiling. Hwoarang raised an eyebrow.

She was beautiful, and sort of familiar…

"Actually… yeah, I am." She reached up and put her hand on his goggles. She smiled again. "And I can't believe you still have this."

Hwoarang's eyes widened as he recognized her.

"Yun Hee?" he said cautiously. "Jeong Yun Hee?"

The nurse beamed.

"Oppa," she said affectionately.

Julia and Asuka glanced, puzzled, between the two as they began talking in Korean.

"Oppa grew your hair out, but it's still red!"

"You grew yours out too. You actually look like a girl now."

Yun Hee laughed.

"Oh really?" she said coyly. Hwoarang grinned and flashed a wink.

"Nah. You're still looking great."

"I haven't seen you in over 4 years and you still look great!" Julia and Asuka sat down and allowed the friends to catch up, even though it was clearly irritating them both.

"So, Sa Bom-Nim (A.N. That's Baek) is alive?" Yun Hee asked, astonished. Hwoarang nodded.

"Yeah, he's alive and well," he said. Asuka cleared her throat, grabbing the couple's attention. Hwoarang grinned sHyepishly, turning to the girls.

"Julia, Asuka," he began, putting an arm around Yun Hee. "This is my old friend, Yun Hee." Julia nodded and greeted her, while Asuka gave her a non-smile. "We go way back. Master Baek trained us together, even though she was way better than me back then." Yun Hee blushed. Hwoarang touched his motorcycle goggles fondly. "She gave me these just before I joined the military." He smiled lovingly at Yun Hee, much to Julia and Asuka's annoyance. Yun Hee noticed.

"No, you've got the wrong idea," she said, laughing. "Hwoarang-sshi and I are just friends." Asuka stood up.

"Good," she said coolly, still smiling mockingly. She obviously didn't like Yun Hee.

"Kazama Asuka," she said, shaking her hand. "Hwoarang's girlfriend." She wrapped herself around Hwoarang's free arm. He just sighed, defeated.

Yun Hee smirked.

"Really…" she said in a sugary voice. "That's great."

"No…" Hwoarang grumbled irritably, trying to shake Asuka off. "She's not—"

"It's okay," Yun Hee laughed. "It's great Oppa found yourself a girl."

"But—"

"How about we get something to eat?" she said quickly, pushing them away from Xiao's room as she suddenly remembered. Yun Hee checked her watch.

A few more minutes. She couldn't let Hwoarang get hurt.

"There's some food in the nurse's lounge if Oppa wants some."

The other three gave her a strange look, but followed her as she headed towards the hall.

"So," she said casually to Hwoarang. "What do you do now? And why are you in Japan?" Hwoarang shrugged, looking down at his feet.

"Seoul didn't work for me," he said carelessly. He looked at her. "What about you?" Yun Hee shrugged.

"Same reason," she replied. The redhead laughed.

"I never expected you to become a nurse, though. I always figured you'd end up working for the CIA or some other secret service."

Yun Hee nervously laughed.

"Well, you know, things change," she lied. "I want to help people now." She glanced at Xiao's room over her shoulder.

The further away from that room, the safer it would be for Hwoarang. She looped her arm around Hwoarang's, smiling sweetly.

"C'mon," she said happily. "Let's get some lunch."

* * *

Xiao bit into a chocolate biscuit as Jin looked on.

"Mmm!" she exclaimed, smacking her lips. "These are really awesome!" She picked up a heart-shaped one and held it out to Jin, smiling sweetly. Jin looked away, ashamed.

Xiao smiled again, tilting her head to see his face.

"Jin," she said in sing-song. He didn't respond. Xiao sighed.

Look, I'm fine." She waved her arms around. "I'm okay now, so stop beating yourself up for nothing. It wasn't even your fault to begin with."

"It was…" Jin mumbled stubbornly, still not looking at her. "I'm sorry." Xiao rolled her eyes.

"Oh, Jin. Don't get all noble and modest like that for something you didn't do." She leaned back onto the bed, rubbing her stomach. "It's such a turn-off."

Xiao took a sip of her water. Jin blushed slightly. He cleared his throat loudly and pulled out the tickets, examining them. Xiao got up.

"I'm gonna go for another glass of water," she said as she walked to the door.

"Do you really think you should be walking around?" Xiao smiled and placed her hand on the door handle.

"I'm fine. Why don't you stop—" She turned the handle, but it wouldn't move. Jin looked up from the tickets.

"What's wrong?" Xiao tried turning the handle again.

"It's locked," she muttered, frowning. Jin put the tickets away and went over to her.

"You're probably doing it wrong," he told her, pushing her aside. To his surprise, the door really was locked. Jin started banging on the door. "Anyone out there?" Xiao spotted something on the side of the cupboard. She bent down to examine it.

"Jin, what's this?" Jin turned around. He crouched down next to Xiao. He extended his hand and gently touched it.

00 : 00 : 38

Jin felt a chill run down his spine as he instantly realized.

"Oh, crap…"

It was a time bomb.

He shot up and ran to the window.

"We have to get out of here." He picked up a chair and smashed the window. "That thing's going to go off any minute now." He cleared away the broken glass, the glanced at the Chinese girl at the door. "Xiao!"

"Coming!" Xiao quickly collected her cell phone, her shoes, her wallet and the necklace Jin gave her. She ran to him. Jin quickly lifted her up so she could climb through the window first. He jumped out after her, grabbing her by the wrist, and they ran as fast as they could away from the window.

Within a split second, the room exploded, forcing Jin and Xiao to leap for cover. Jin glanced back at the smoking window, breathing heavily. Xiao stared, dumbfounded.

"Wow. They really want to kill us." Jin grabbed her hand again, much to her surprise, and they started to run.

"Let's go," he said. "One of them must still be around here somewhere. We can't take anymore chances." Xiao nodded in agreement.

* * *

Asuka, Julia, Hwoarang and Yun Hee rushed to the crowd around Xiao's room.

"What the hell…?!" Asuka exclaimed, pushing her way through.

The room was a wreck. She frantically looked around, seeing if Jin and Xiao were anywhere in the crowd. Yun Hee smiled sadistically to herself.

"Can you see them?" Julia said, looking around. No sign of Jin or Xiao anywhere. "I can't believe this…" Asuka pushed her way to the entrance of the room, only to find it empty. She looked around wildly, but there was too much damage to tell whether or not Jin or Xiao had been blown into pieces or not. She let out a frustrated cry. Yun Hee sighed and stared sadly at Hwoarang.

"I'm so sorry, Hwoarang-sshi," she said sympathetically.

Before he could react, he felt his cell phone vibrate. He took it out as Julia and Asuka came over. Yun Hee comforted them.

Hwoarang flipped open his phone and read the SMS. He stiffened.

"What is it?" Asuka asked.

"It's from Xiao," Hwoarang muttered through clinched teeth. The three girls gasped in surprise. Yun Hee felt like kicking herself, but hid it with false concern.

"Are they okay?" she said eagerly_. They had to at least be injured. Surely all her hard work hadn't come to nothing._

"Yes…" Hwoarang answered. "They're on their way to Tokyo." Yun Hee took note. She turned towards the hall again. Hwoarang quickly looked up from the phone was she began to walk away.

"Yun Hee-sshi!" he called out. Yun Hee stopped and smiled to herself as he said her name. She glanced at him over her shoulder.

"I'd better help out now," she told him. Yun Hee smiled. "I'll see you around, Oppa."

Hwoarang sighed sadly, but nodded. Yun Hee blew him a kiss and then ran off, her sweet smile immediately melting away when her face was turned.

"Tokyo," she said to herself. She heaved a grim sigh and shook her head. "Caroline-unnie is not going to be happy."

Asuka frowned at Hwoarang, who turned stony-faced again when he looked back down at his phone.

"Hwoarang," she said. "You said they're okay, right? What are you upset about now?" Hwoarang slammed shut his phone. He glared at Asuka.

"Because," he snapped. "They took my goddamn credit card with them!"

* * *

**I'm gonna slip in Korean words every now and then in Hwoarang and Yun Hee****'s dialogue, just to create the feel and point out that they are actually foreigners compared to Jin, Xiaoyu (… yeah, I know) and Asuka. Julia is the exception, 'cos she's American. Don****'****t quite know what else to do with her.  
**

**4/2008 Edit: Don't fret! This will be continued in a few months! I promise!!**


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